Fiddled around with the alpha build and definitely see some potential here, like the aesthetics and such. I do have an issue with my vehicle pulling to the left, not sure if that's a bug or my controller may want to check that out.

I wish you luck going forward, but I do find it odd to have a seemingly multiplayer focused racer as a PC only game. Now obviously, cost of entry is lowest on PC but this does feel like a game with a good bit of console potential.

I think looking into either a PS4 or Switch version would be wise. PS4 because of the userbase and performance. Switch because 1) dev kit costs are apparently quite low (something like $500?) and 2) there seems to be the beginnings of a little futuristic racer ecosystem there with FAST RMX at launch and Redout in the Spring so you may find synergy with those titles sales wise.

Not really. Shields stayed in use for quite a long while. And this armor has just enough vulnerabilities to make it worth having. Plus, heater shields are commonly used by people in full plate due to their thickness and durability. Men in full plate are vulnerable to mace, bardiche, halberd, etc blows and so the heater is well designed to deflect those.

It would be quite neat actually if it were possible to win them over to the side of the Free Peoples rather than Sauron since they are not inherently evil. Like how the Dunlendings came to live peacefully as a protectorate of sorts of the Reunited Kingdom.

Well, the ideal lore-accurate approach would indeed have them be OP. Of all the various peoples attacked in the War of the Ring, only Lothlorien and the Woodland Realm managed to not only hold their defenses firm, but launch devastating counter attacks. Dale and Erebor were beaten back into The Mountain and were desperately holding on before the Ring was destroyed. And while Gondor and Rohan together indeed had tens of thousands they could muster in time, they certainly weren't in as good shape as the Elves.

Well there's hard and then there's impossible. And Sauron lost, twice, while he had the Ring. Ar-Pharazon's army was so mighty that all Sauron's fled and he didn't even try to fight. And in the War of the Last Alliance he fought Elendil and Gil-Galad and while he killed both, he was mortally wounded. So clearly, he isn't impossible to kill and having him capable of singlehandedly taking down entire armies is silly.

While the mod unfriendliness is unfortunate, comparing Bannerlord and Total War is apples to oranges. They are entirely different games and entirely different experiences. One is an RTS, the other is an RPG with RTS elements.

I know this is unusual, but I'm just going to put this out there: if the campaign aspect is going to be a snag for now, it might be a good idea to maintain traction and demonstrate progress to release a version when all units, factions, custom battle maps, etc are done that is mainly for custom battles and either has no campaign or the campaign just takes place on Europe. not as a full version, but as a sort of beta/alpha/demo to show off units, balance, settlements, UI, etc.

Congratulations on completing and releasing Enderal, SureAI! Out of the "big four" as I like to call them (that is, MERP, Ethas: Embrace of Destiny, Andoran, and Enderal), I am glad to see at least one of us made it. Wish you the best going forward with Enderal and your future works, you guys are among the best.

PS: I remember a long while ago you brought up the idea of going indie. Is that still on the cards? I think you have the organization skill and experience to do it.

First, SureAI members have spoken before and at least some are fluent in English. Many Europeans are bilingual. Second, you can find translators. Third, they have English footage out of their WIP English version. Translated and English voiced.

hehehe, got you on that ending I see :P I hope the chapter was enjoyable aside from the shock of the final scene xD
Slavery is common but already technically illegal in all major kingdoms (Thenodar, Nosmalos, Vishethas, and Anorthile specifically). However, only Thenodar and Anorthile are aggressive in investigating and punishing it. Nosmalos has it very dark underbelly and a market for household servants and Vishethas has a less conventional use for them.
However, slavery is very common in the Feralands and at times a desired fate. People selling themselves in general is not too uncommon, or selling one's children, usually with the goal of landing them a safe job in Nosmalos as a servant, mistress, or even a spouse to a wealthy lord rather than scraping by in the wilderness. The Feralands can be a very dangerous place. As for what made his offer unusual, you will have to wait and see ;)

The continent of Althas does not have many arid regions. However, there is a land to the south of Althas that is more arid in many regions and yes, they are darker skinned people and will have a more middle-eastern and/or African inspired culture. You won't visit these lands, but there are some areas where they have been permitted to settle in the south of Althas so it is planned you will encounter them.

So hey, if you're checking out our new update you will see we have a blog post expanding on it that the article links to. In the future, we will be looking into having such blog posts up with most updates, expanding on what we are doing and what's being shown.